1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electronic-component supplying system and particularly to such a supplying system including electronic-component supplying cartridges.
2. Related Art Statement
There is known an electronic-component supplying system which includes a plurality of electronic-component supplying cartridges and a support table to which each cartridge is attachable. Each component-supplying cartridge supports a plurality of electronic components and supplies each component to an electronic-component mounting device, and the support table has one or more support surfaces for supporting the cartridges. Each cartridge is positioned on the support surface by a positioning device in one or more directions parallel to the support surfaces, and is prevented from moving up from the support surfaces by a moving-up preventing device.
In the conventional electronic-component supplying system, the positioning device includes (a) a pair of positioning pins which are provided on the support surfaces of the table, at respective locations spaced apart from each other in a direction parallel to a longitudinal direction of each cartridge, and (b) a pair of positioning holes which are formed in a bottom surface of the cartridge, corresponding to the positioning pins. When each cartridge is attached to the table, the two positioning pins are aligned with, and fit in, the corresponding positioning holes, respectively, so that the cartridge is supported by the support surfaces of the table. Thus, each cartridge is positioned on the support surfaces. Then, the moving-up of the cartridge from the support surfaces is prevented by the moving-up preventing device.
However, it is very cumbersome to position the cartridge by fitting the positioning pins in the corresponding positioning holes.
The fitting of the positioning pins in the positioning holes requires an operator to align the centers of the pins with the corresponding holes. This alignment permits only very small positioning errors or tolerances in the length-wise and width-wise directions of the cartridge. In addition, since the holes are formed in the bottom surface of the cartridge to be supported by the support surfaces of the table, the operator cannot see the holes when fitting the pins in the holes. Thus, the operator must move the cartridge relative to the table back and forth in the length-wise and width-wise directions of the cartridge, while iteratively making a guess in aligning the pins with the holes. This is very cumbersome and the attachment of each cartridge to the support table is time-consuming. Thus, it needs much time to replace a cartridge with another when the current sort of electronic components are changed to another sort, or when the current electronic components have already been supplied or consumed. This leads to lowering the efficiency of supplying of electronic components.